Listen free for 30 days

  • Running the Table

  • The Legend of Kid Delicious, the Last Great American Pool Hustler
  • Written by: L. Jon Wertheim
  • Narrated by: L. Jon Wertheim
  • Length: 5 hrs and 55 mins
  • 4.0 out of 5 stars (1 rating)

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo + applicable taxes after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
Running the Table cover art

Running the Table

Written by: L. Jon Wertheim
Narrated by: L. Jon Wertheim
Try for $0.00

$14.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $26.28

Buy Now for $26.28

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Tax where applicable.

Publisher's Summary

From a popular senior writer for Sports Illustrated comes this high-stakes, boys-on-the-road story about the most unlikely of phenoms: a heavyset, bipolar, and endlessly charming pool hustler named Kid Delicious.

In most sports the pinnacle is Wheaties-box notoriety. But in the world of pool, notoriety is the last thing a hustler desires. Such is the dilemma that faces one Danny Basavich, an affable, generously proportioned Jewish kid from Jersey, who flounders through high school until he discovers the one thing he excels at - the felt - and hits the road.

Running the Table spins the outrageous tale of Kid Delicious and his studly, if less talented, set-up man, Bristol Bob. Never was there a more entertaining or mismatched pair of sidekicks, as together they go underground into the flavorfully seamy world of pool to learn the art of the hustle and experience the highs and lows of life on the road. Their four-year odyssey takes them from Podunk pool halls to slick urban billiard rooms across America, as they manage one night to take down as much as $30,000 - only to lose so much the next night that they lack gas money to get home.

With every stop, the action gets hotter, the calls get closer, and Delicious' prowess with a cue stick becomes known more and more widely. Ultimately, Delicious sheds his cover once and for all and becomes professional pool's biggest sensation since Minnesota Fats.

In a book sure to appeal to fans of Bringing Down the House and Positively Fifth Street, Wertheim evokes a subculture full of nefarious but lovable characters and illuminates America's fascination with games and gambling. He also paints a lasting portrait of an insanely talented and magnetic hustler, who is literally larger than life.

©2007 L. Jon Wertheim (P)2007 Random House Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House Inc.

What the critics say

"Wertheim's eloquent and vivid prose...perfectly captures the squalid, sepia-toned environs of America's billiard halls." ( Publishers Weekly)

What listeners say about Running the Table

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    0
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Captivating

Great story and we'll told. Reader was very interesting. The content was good but not what I expected. This was very biographical and focused more on the star than the hustle.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!